Half of my leadership team wants high-level visionary discussions while the other half gets bogged down in granular spreadsheets. How do you facilitate our session days so neither group tunes out or gets frustrated?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

It's a common scenario for a leadership team to have diverse cognitive styles. Some leaders naturally gravitate towards high-level, visionary discussions, while others prefer to delve into granular details. We actively manage this split during our sessions by structuring communication to accommodate both preferences.

Bridging the Gap with EOS Tools

We leverage EOS® (Entrepreneurial Operating System) tools to effectively bridge this gap:

• Vision/Traction Organizer (V/TO®): This tool captures the high-altitude vision and strategic direction of the company, satisfying the macro-thinkers. It allows for broad, [visionary discussions](/qa/visionary-integrator-deadlock-resolution) about the future.
• Quarterly Rocks and Scorecard: We translate the vision down to a ground level through specific, measurable Rocks and the Scorecard. This approach satisfies the micro-thinkers by providing concrete, actionable plans and metrics.

Facilitating Issue Resolution with IDS®

During our session days, we use the Identify, Discuss, Solve (IDS®) process to address issues. This structured approach prevents the team from getting bogged down in endless, abstract debates:

1. Identify: We pinpoint the real problem or opportunity.
2. Discuss: We briefly discuss the issue at the appropriate level of detail, avoiding excessive abstraction for the detail-oriented and unnecessary minutiae for the visionaries.
3. Solve: We quickly move to active experimentation and practical solutions. This ensures that every discussion is directly tied to an actionable ninety-day execution plan, appealing to both types of thinkers.

By acknowledging the different strengths and learning styles within your team, we ensure that every session day provides both the conceptual clarity the visionaries need and the concrete action plan the operators crave. This keeps everyone engaged and prevents either group from tuning out.

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